Caution and avance: what the law actually says
Three months' deposit, six months in advance: these demands are common, but what does the law actually provide? And how to negotiate.
What the law says
Cameroonian law regulates the security deposit. In urban practice, the common demand is two to three months' caution, returnable on departure if the inventory checks out.
The avance
The avance is rent paid in advance. It is not a deposit: it is set against future rent. Six months in advance therefore means you pay nothing for six months.
The real cost of entry
For a studio at 60,000 FCFA a month, with two months' caution and three months' avance, you must produce 300,000 FCFA on the day you get the keys. That figure, not the rent, decides whether you can afford the place.
That is exactly why SlayImmo shows the move-in cost on every rental listing.
Negotiating
- Offer a longer avance in exchange for a smaller caution.
- Ask for a written, photographed inventory signed by both sides.
- Insist on a receipt for every sum paid.
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Every listing on SlayImmo declares its paperwork and its true move-in cost.
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